Xerix BlogXerix Bloghttp://www.gameinformer.com/blogs/members/b/xerix_blog/atom.aspxCommunity Server2013-03-16T15:06:00ZWhy I'm Finally Excited About Next Gen/blogs/members/b/xerix_blog/archive/2013/10/24/why-i-39-m-finally-excited-about-next-gen.aspx2013-10-23T23:40:00Z2013-10-23T23:40:00Z<p>Since their announcement back in June I&#39;ve not really gotten on the train of excitement when it comes to the Next Gen leap. Nothing has really had me jumping out of my seat to go grab the Next Gen train and join the craze. That is until I read the latest Issue of Game informer. (247) Not since Issue 187 of Game Informer when Dragon Age: Origins was the cover story have I been so excited about what the Industry has to offer. But three things in particular seem to have finally drawn me into the excitement of Next Gen.</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>First is that Kingdom Hearts is finally coming to a close. I know most people don&#39;t get excited about their favorite series coming to an end, but most Kingdom Hearts fans will tell you that the Announcement of Kingdom Hearts 3 was actually one of the most bittersweet moments. Most all of us have been dying for this since 2006 when Kingdom Hearts 2 first released. Since then we&#39;ve seen a total of four spin offs and quiet frankly the waiting has started to wear on fans. But that one announcement in June set the fandom ablaze with excitement. But I said that moment was bittersweet didn&#39;t I. And it is bitter too. I mean one of my and many others favorite series is coming to an end. But that ending has me excited with the Next Gen. We were told that Kingdom Hearts 3 was the end of Sora&#39;s story, but not the franchise. That means we&#39;ve got limitless potential for new stories and games.</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Secondly I&#39;m excited for Issue 247&#39;s cover story The Order: 1886. The Order is an odd take on Arthurian Legend, and even more so what could have been. Set in London this game blends some of my favorite elements, A beautiful Steampunk setting, insane takes on what could have been, and mysterious and complex characters. Ready at Dawn has some how flown under my radar for the last few years, and now that I know they will be PS4 exclusive developers they are a must watch. But what really has me excited about The Order is that it&#39;s a brand new IP.</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>What I think has me most excited is that the potential for this generation to be more akin to the much adored 6th is that there is limitless potential. New IPs will be popping up like there is no tomorrow. Maybe I&#39;m being hopefully but this generation has the potential to be the greatest yet.</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p style="text-align:center;"><i>So what about you guys? Hopes and Dreams for Next Gen? How do you think it will compare to Generations past.</i></p>
<p style="text-align:center;"><i>Maybe you aren&#39;t excited for the Next Gen still, why or why not are you ready for the Next Gen.</i></p>
<p style="text-align:center;"><i>Most importantly though I hope you enjoyed reading my couple of little thoughts.</i>&nbsp;</p><div style="clear:both;"></div><img src="http://www.gameinformer.com/aggbug.aspx?PostID=5712847" width="1" height="1">Xerixhttp://www.gameinformer.com/members/Xerix/default.aspxViridian Forest/blogs/members/b/xerix_blog/archive/2013/10/23/viridian-forest.aspx2013-10-23T13:17:00Z2013-10-23T13:17:00Z<p style="text-align:center;"><a title="Dawn of the First Day" href="http://www.gameinformer.com/blogs/members/b/xerix_blog/archive/2013/10/17/dawn-of-the-first-day.aspx">Dawn of the First Day</a></p>
<p style="text-align:center;"><a title="Route 1" href="http://www.gameinformer.com/blogs/members/b/xerix_blog/archive/2013/10/21/route-1-unexpected-captures.aspx">Route 1</a></p>
<p style="text-align:left;">Well the links go to the first two Chapters and I hope you&#39;ll enjoy this one.</p>
<p style="text-align:left;">&nbsp;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Waking up in a room other than mine was stranger. Still I
happened to be lucky enough to be facing a window that looked out at the
sunset. The sky was a vibrant red, and several Pidgey and a few Spearow flittered
on the edge of the horizon before they disappeared behind the sun. I stretched out
and sleepily made my way down stairs. The nurse, Joy I believe she said her
name was, pointed me back upstairs offering me the use of the shower there in
the building. After a quick rinse I was back on the main floor ready to resume
my journey. &ldquo;Here you are Roxas, both your Pok&eacute;mon in tip top shape.&rdquo; I took my
pok&eacute;balls; one red and orange, the other blue and white, and thanked her for
all her help. &ldquo;Roxas take these as well.&rdquo; She handed me four bottles; two purple
and two yellow. &ldquo;The purple bottle is a potion, the yellow ones are Antidotes.
You&rsquo;ll need them if you are going to get through Viridian Forest. The place is
crawling with Poison types so please be careful.&rdquo; I thanked her once more and
headed out of the Pok&eacute;mon Center opposite of the where I&rsquo;d originally entered.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">&nbsp;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">The forest quickly over took the road again and it wasn&rsquo;t
long before I found a broken and rotted sign that had the words Viridian Forest
barely visible on it. I pushed forward and soon found that the tree line formed
a natural maze. I could hear the Pok&eacute;mon in the forest, but couldn&rsquo;t see a
single one. My nerves got the better of me and I clicked the button one
Cynder&rsquo;s ball and released it letting it walk beside me. Cynder walked with her
head held high. She was confident in herself, and seeing that must have rubbed
off on me because I remember as soon as she was beside me I stood taller.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">&nbsp;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">As we made our way through the forest a few Spinarak and
Pinco had tried to attack them, but Cynder defeated them no problem with her
Ember attack. I even took the time to add a third Pok&eacute;mon to my team, a
Clefairy. I had returned Cynder to her pok&eacute;ball after I caught the Clefairy and
continued on my way. The thick trees prevented me from telling the time so I
moved quickly through the forest trying to make it to Pewter before sun down. As
I neared the exit of the forest I began to hear shouting. It sounded like
someone was in trouble so I took off. When I found the source of the noise I
saw a man in a business suit pinned against a tree. Standing in front of him
was a woman dressed head to toe in an all black uniform.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">&nbsp;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">&ldquo;Now you listen here miss, I work for a very big company and
they&rsquo;ll send the best of the best to rescue me.&rdquo; He said in a pathetic whimper.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">&nbsp;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">The woman laughed. &ldquo;Dedenne use Thunder Wave and shut him
up.&rdquo; A small Pok&eacute;mon about the size of a Pikachu scurried over to the man and
rubbed its cheek against the man sending a small series of blue sparks through
his body paralyzing him. &ldquo;I&rsquo;ll take this.&rdquo; The woman reached down taking several
pok&eacute;balls from his bag.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">&nbsp;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">&ldquo;Give those back.&rdquo; I shouted as I tossed my blue and white
pok&eacute;ball releasing Draco from his pok&eacute;ball.&nbsp;
The woman turned and was stunned when she saw Draco.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">&nbsp;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">&ldquo;Now that&rsquo;s a prize worth having.&rdquo; She said laughing at me.
&ldquo;Do you know who you are messing with?&rdquo;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">&nbsp;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">&ldquo;A no good Pok&eacute;thief, that&rsquo;s who!&rdquo; Her face quickly turned
from confidence to anger.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">&nbsp;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">&ldquo;I&rsquo;m no common thief, I&rsquo;m a member of Team Rocket, and I
will not stand to be insulted like that! No go Dedenne use Spark!&rdquo; The tiny
mouse Pok&eacute;mon began to charge itself with electrical power.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">&nbsp;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">&ldquo;Don&rsquo;t let it get an attack off Draco use Slam!&rdquo; Draco hit
the Dedenne with blinding speed. The mouse toppled over, but still managed to
nail Draco be wrapping its tail around Draco&rsquo;s. Draco took the hit and got
right back up. &ldquo;That&rsquo;s it Draco now use Dragon Rage.&rdquo; Draco opened its mouth
and a violent storm like blue and yellow breath spewed from Draco. The Dedenne
barely managed to avoid the attack.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">&nbsp;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">&ldquo;You&rsquo;re good kid, but I&rsquo;m better. Now Dedenne, Play Rough.&rdquo;
An evil grin appeared on the Pokemon&rsquo;s face as it wrapped its tail around Draco
and started squeezing him and slamming him into the ground repeatedly. Draco
tried to break free, but nothing would work. I sat there helpless until finally
I remembered how Cynder had escaped from this situation when it fought Draco.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">&nbsp;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">&ldquo;Draco use Water Gun on its face!&rdquo; Draco turned and let lose
a furious stream of water into the face of the Rocket&rsquo;s Dedenne. &ldquo;That&rsquo;s it now
use Slam!&rdquo; Draco hit it again before the thing could regain its senses. &ldquo;Now
finish it with one final Slam Draco!&rdquo; Draco leapt gracefully into the air then
landed on the Dedenne causing it to stop moving all together.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">&nbsp;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">&ldquo;You win this round,&rdquo; The woman said returning her Dedenne
to its pok&eacute;ball. &ldquo;I&rsquo;ll pay you back for this though kid.&rdquo; The woman threw a
Smoke Ball against the ground and took off. When the smoke finally cleared I
saw three pok&eacute;balls lying on the ground. I returned Draco to his pok&eacute;ball, and
walked over to the three pok&eacute;balls picking them up and returning them to the
business man who was slowly beginning to return to normal.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">&nbsp;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Th-thank you so much!&rdquo; The man said shaking my hand
vigorously.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">&nbsp;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">&ldquo;It was nothing really. I was just doing the right thing.&rdquo;
When he finally stopped shaking my hand he asked me what I was doing out here.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">&nbsp;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">&ldquo;I&rsquo;m on my way to Pewter. I just started my journey to
become a Pok&eacute;mon Master.&rdquo; I said triumphantly.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">&nbsp;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">&ldquo;Pewter you say? Well how&rsquo;s about you escort me the rest of
the way there and in return I&rsquo;ll give you one of these three Pok&eacute;mon?&rdquo; I
readily agreed and we quickly made our way to Pewter City.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">&nbsp;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">&ldquo;So what were you doing out in the forest sir?&rdquo; I asked
politely.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">&nbsp;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">&ldquo;Well I was sent to Kanto from Hoenn, to help start up a new
Devon Corps location. Plus these I&rsquo;m delivering these three Pok&eacute;mon to Cedric
Juniper. Once he hears how you rescued me I&rsquo;m sure he&rsquo;ll have no problem
handing one over to you.&rdquo; The man and I talked about his youth, his days as a
Pok&eacute;mon trainer and how he had been friends with Steven, the Champion of the
Hoenn League, as a child. Finally we made it to Pewter at about sundown. The
man led me through the city and we finally stopped in front of a large green
and brown building. &ldquo;This is Devon Corps, Kanto location. You can stay here for
the night if you want. We&rsquo;ve got a couple beds for the scientists who will be
living here, but since they&rsquo;ve yet to arrive they should be available.&rdquo;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">&nbsp;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">&ldquo;Thank you sir!&rdquo; I said beaming with happiness. &ldquo;You
wouldn&rsquo;t happen to know where the Pok&eacute;mon Center is, would you sir?&rdquo;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">&nbsp;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">&ldquo;Unfortunately no I don&rsquo;t, but perhaps you could ask my son,
Lucas. He arrived about a week before me. Lucas, are you here? I need you to
help a new friend of mine.&rdquo; A boy about my age peered around the corner. </p>
<p class="MsoNormal">&nbsp;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">&ldquo;You called dad?&rdquo; He had long white hair and was wearing a
red jacket with black jeans.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">&nbsp;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">&ldquo;Yes. I&rsquo;d like you to show my friend Roxas here around town.
He&rsquo;s new and needs a quick tour.&rdquo;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">&nbsp;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">&ldquo;Sure, just let me get Chespin and Houndour and we&rsquo;ll be
off!&rdquo; He ran up stairs then came back almost instantly a black bag on his neck
and two pok&eacute;balls now on his belt. &ldquo;Come on Roxas!&rdquo;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">&nbsp;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">&ldquo;Hold on Lucas hold on. First I&rsquo;d like to give Roxas a
Pokemon like I promised. Now Roxas I won&rsquo;t tell you what Pokemon is in each
ball, but you can choose anyone you like.&rdquo; I looked them over and they were all
the same. So I went with the one on the left and pulled out another one of my
custom pok&eacute;balls and pressed the button to the button of my chosen pokeball.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">&nbsp;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">&ldquo;Okay, okay let&rsquo;s go already.&rdquo; Lucas urged me out of the
house. As soon as we were out of ear shot Lucas&rsquo;s whole demeanor changed. &ldquo;So
you&rsquo;re a trainer then?&rdquo; He asked already knowing the answer.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">&nbsp;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">&ldquo;Well yeah. It&rsquo;s only my second day though.&rdquo; I said
nervously.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">&nbsp;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">&ldquo;Are you gonna travel?&rdquo;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">&nbsp;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">&ldquo;That&rsquo;s the plan.&rdquo; I said excitedly. &ldquo;I&rsquo;m going to travel
the world and become a Pokemon Master.&rdquo;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">&nbsp;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">&ldquo;Then can I ask you for a favor?&rdquo; I nodded my head yes. &ldquo;I
want to come with you.&rdquo; I was a bit shocked the guy had only just met me. &ldquo;I&rsquo;ve
had my Pokemon for a year now and my dad won&rsquo;t even let me challenge a gym. But
he&rsquo;s seen you in battle so maybe he&rsquo;ll let me finally travel if I have a friend
to go with me.&rdquo;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">&nbsp;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">&ldquo;Well company would be nice.&rdquo; I said thinking about it. I
dropped my Pokemon off at the Pokemon Center. Lucas and I continued to talk
about Pokemon and our dreams as we walk back to the Devon Corps building. &ldquo;Hey
Lucas,&rdquo; I said being as calm as possible. &ldquo;If your dad says yes, then I&rsquo;d love
to have you along.&rdquo;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">&nbsp;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Lucas&rsquo;s face lit up with excitement. &ldquo;You mean it Roxas?&rdquo; I
nodded my head yes. &ldquo;Oh thank you so much! I&rsquo;ll talk to my dad tonight! Tomorrow
we hit the road!&rdquo;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">&nbsp;</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">&ldquo;Actually Lucas, first I&rsquo;ve got to defeat the Pewter Gym.
And since you are gonna tag along maybe you could too.&rdquo; Lucas shook his head
and we headed into the building. I walked up the stairs to the third floor
where the beds were and crashed.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">&nbsp;</p>
<p style="text-align:center;" class="MsoNormal"><i>Well I hope you enjoyed another chapter. I&#39;ll be updating Roxas&#39;s and Lucas&#39;s teams every fifth chapter. Anyway until next time my friends.</i></p><div style="clear:both;"></div><img src="http://www.gameinformer.com/aggbug.aspx?PostID=5649711" width="1" height="1">Xerixhttp://www.gameinformer.com/members/Xerix/default.aspxRoute 1: Unexpected Captures/blogs/members/b/xerix_blog/archive/2013/10/21/route-1-unexpected-captures.aspx2013-10-21T12:45:00Z2013-10-21T12:45:00Z<p class="MsoNormal">So in case you missed the first installment you can read it here! <a title="Dawn of the First Day" href="http://www.gameinformer.com/blogs/members/b/xerix_blog/archive/2013/10/17/dawn-of-the-first-day.aspx">Dawn of the First Day</a>&nbsp;Anyway here is the second chapter.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Route 1 had suffered the least in Kanto. The lack of
travelers after the Dragon Wars left it open to the rampant growth of trees and
tall grass. &nbsp;The growth and scarring of
the wars had left almost all of the Pok&eacute;mon in Kanto scattered. Pok&eacute;dexes had
been issued to trainers over the last few years to finally start gathering
information on the new locations of Pok&eacute;mon. Roxas had yet to see any wild Pok&eacute;mon,
since he had stuck close to the road, but he knew he&rsquo;d need a second Pok&eacute;mon to
help him against the first Gym Leader. He had some time though between here and
Pewter. Normally Viridian City was between Pallet Town and Pewter City, but
ever since the war no one went to Viridian anymore. It was one of the largest battle
sites of the war and it was scarred. As I thought about the torn up city an
idea came to me. No one ever went to Viridian so the place must be crawling
with Pok&eacute;mon.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">I passed the time ideally daydreaming about my first Pok&eacute;mon
battle. The thought of using my first Pok&eacute;mon would be like. As I approached
the southern entrance of the city I was wonderstruck at what I saw. The town
was littered with giant piles of rubble and some craters filled with water.
Despite the fallen rubble and torn up road, you could hardly tell this place
was ever Viridian City anymore. A couple of Rattata scurried to and fro about
the abandoned city.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Roxas felt a shiver go down his spine. I had been here ten years
ago. Back when the city was still whole. Back when the Dragon War had begun. I
was barely eight when it happened. Two giant Dragon type Pok&eacute;mon burst from the
Viridian Gym and two men vowed to defeat each other. As enigmatic as the two
men were the entire world became enamored with their views. Within two years
the world was at war. After four everyone who wasn&rsquo;t a Pok&eacute;mon Trainer lived in
constant fear. The war waged on for nine years in all. When it was all said and
done people returned to their daily lives. Even to this day people were wary.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">I made my way over to one of the craters filled with water
and filled my bottle. I looked down in the water cleaning my face only to
notice that I was face to face with a Dratini. The little blue and white serpent
was staring at me from the water&rsquo;s surface. I couldn&rsquo;t believe my eyes. Dragon
type Pok&eacute;mon were rare enough before the war, after they were all but extinct.
I could hardly believe what I was seeing. I just knew I had to catch it. My
hand went to my Pok&eacute;ball, I breathed in, and threw it.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">&ldquo;Go, Cynder!&rdquo; I yelled as the now red and orange ball made
impact with the ground. A popping noise was followed by a white light. Out of
the Pok&eacute;ball appeared my first Pok&eacute;mon, Charmander. &nbsp;The red-orange lizard had a small flame
flickering from the tip of its tail. I was in awe of the tiny monster. It had
razor sharp claws and its eyes were bright red, lit with a fiery energy. It
stared down the Dratini in front of it, as if aware of my intent. The Dratini lunged
out of the crater and tackled Cynder to the ground.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">&ldquo;Come on Cynder you got this!&rdquo; Cynder stood up triumphantly
and took the offensive with a flurry of scratches. &ldquo;Yeah, that&rsquo;s it Cynder
drive it home!&rdquo; Dratini took a couple blows before getting itself around Cynder
and wrapped its body tight. Cynder couldn&rsquo;t move its limbs at all. &ldquo;Come on
Cynder you can do it!&rdquo; The flame on Cynder&rsquo;s tail began to blaze powerfully.
Cynder opened its jaw and a small flame burst forward. The flame singed the Dratini&rsquo;s
face sending it reeling back in pain. Cynder let lose another flame which was met
with a stream of water propelled from Dratini&rsquo;s mouth. Both streams continued
for what seemed like hours. Finally both streams died out, &ldquo;Now Cynder us
scratch!&rdquo; Cynder moved in and landed a decisive blow sending Dratini back a few
feet. My hand went to another Pok&eacute;ball in my bag, I breathed in once more, and
threw it.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">The Pok&eacute;ball soared through the air. Everything seemed to
move in slow motion as I watched it sail towards my first capture. I could
hardly breathe at all the ball made contact and popped open. A blue beam
absorbed the Dratini. The ball hit the ground sat in complete stillness. I
watched my body shacking with anticipation. It shook once. I could see Cynder
shacking as well as if it could feel my nerves. It shook a second time. It was
in the bag I just knew it! It shook a final time. I rushed to the Pok&eacute;ball as
it dinged. I could hardly believe my delight. I pressed the button on the ball
immediately releasing my newly caught Dratini. I stared at the little serpent who
was more than content to approach Cynder and attempt to make a new rival. They
traded a few glares and a small strike or two and they seemed to settle down. I
returned them both to their Pok&eacute;ball, and looked up noticed the sun was
setting.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Hurrying down the road out of the north side of town I
barely made it to the Pok&eacute;mon Center as the sunset just behind him. He was
greeted at the front counter by a red haired woman in a white uniform. &ldquo;Oh&rdquo; She
piped &ldquo;A visitor! It&rsquo;s been some time since we had a visitor!&rdquo;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">&ldquo;I hope it&rsquo;s not too late ma&rsquo;am.&rdquo; I said instinctively. &ldquo;I
was just wondering is there a room I could stay in for the night.&rdquo;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">&ldquo;Of course&rdquo; She smiled and pointed to a set of stairs
leading to a second floor. &ldquo;First door on the left&rdquo; I turned to head up to my
room when the nurse caught a glimpse of my belt that held my two Pok&eacute;balls. &ldquo;Sir,
are you a Pok&eacute;mon Trainer?&rdquo; I looked at her and nodded. &ldquo;Here let me see those.&rdquo;
She pointed to my Pokeballs.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">I hesitated at first, Pokemon theft was common since the end
of the war. But womething told me I could trust this woman. I handed her my
Pokeballs. &ldquo;Thank you.&rdquo; I turned again to head up the stairs. The room I was
offered was nothing spectacular, but it was a soft bed and roof over my head. I
closed my eyes and drifted off to sleep.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">&nbsp;</p>
<p style="text-align:center;" class="MsoNormal"><i>Hope you guys enjoyed. Feel free to leave ideas for future team members.</i></p>
<p style="text-align:center;" class="MsoNormal"><i>On a side note. You&#39;ll notice that the Pokeball I mentioned in the opening has changed color on purpose. I find it insane that any trainer would actually be able to tell which Pokeball is which if they all look exactly the same. So now each Pokeball will take on different colors based on what Pokemon it holds.</i></p>
<p style="text-align:center;" class="MsoNormal"><i>Anyway thanks for reading you guys!</i></p><div style="clear:both;"></div><img src="http://www.gameinformer.com/aggbug.aspx?PostID=5546271" width="1" height="1">Xerixhttp://www.gameinformer.com/members/Xerix/default.aspxDawn of the First Day/blogs/members/b/xerix_blog/archive/2013/10/17/dawn-of-the-first-day.aspx2013-10-17T19:35:00Z2013-10-17T19:35:00Z<p>So hopefully I&#39;m back for a good long while this time. School and several other factors have kept me busy, but I&#39;m done with that stuff and so I&#39;m going to be back around commenting and blogging. Anyway I&#39;m gonna hit the ground running with the opening to a little Pokemon story that I&#39;m going tobe posting here on GIO. Anyway let&#39;s start guys and gals!</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">I touched my feet to the ground and knew at once I was home.
The grass felt great across my bare feet. It was natural being barefoot. I had
never liked shoes so I just chose not to wear them. My plain white shirt was
unremarkable while my jacket drew a lot of attention to itself being a golden
and red color. My mother had made it for me for my eighteenth birthday. As I
thought about what today meant for me, my hand went instinctively to my belt
which held a single tiny sphere. It was white and black in color with a chrome
ring around the center and a chrome button on the front. Removing it from my
belt I looked over it with admiration. Today I started my journey. Ever since
the Dragon War between Zekrom and Reshiram ravaged the land and tore the
inhabitance asunder, separating them into two groups, kids were no longer
allowed to start their journeys at ten. The age had been moved to eighteen even
after a group of trainers reunited the world and allowed people to begin
rebuilding. With the Gym system having been reinstated the Leaders returned to
their posts and that&rsquo;s where I was headed. First I had to be given my first Pok&eacute;mon
though. I was lucky enough to begin my journey the same way as the one of the
six Pok&eacute;mon Masters who had united the world again. Red, the Champion of Kanto
and Leader of the Pok&eacute;mon Masters had begun his journey just like I was, here
in Pallet Town. I made my way in the quiet early morning, towards the lab of
Professor Oak. I could hear the noises of Pok&eacute;mon coming from behind the lab. I
gave the door a gentle knock as I approached it. I waited a few moments before
I knocked again. I waited once more and went to knock as the doors slid open in
front of me. I was greeted by a young, spiky, brown haired adult standing in
front of me. He wore a pristine white lab coat labeled researcher. I assumed by
the lack of gray hair that this was just an assistant. &ldquo;I&rsquo;m looking for
Professor Oak, sir.&rdquo; I said to him as politely as I could. The man looked at me
as if trying to decide if I was serious.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">&nbsp;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Several moments of unnerving silence finally ended when the
man in the lab coat began to laugh at me and extended his hand. &ldquo;I&rsquo;m Green.&rdquo; He
said holding out his hand. I took it reluctantly as I stood wide eyed at the
fact that I hadn&rsquo;t recognized one of the greatest Pok&eacute;mon Researchers in the
world. &ldquo;I&rsquo;m Professor Oak&rsquo;s grandson. I&rsquo;ll be taking over the lab soon so I&rsquo;ve
been running it while he is out of town.&rdquo; Another chuckle escaped him as if
some invisible joke had been made at my expense. &ldquo;I apologize for rambling you
are?&rdquo;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">&nbsp;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">&ldquo;I&rsquo;m Roxas.&rdquo; I said confidently. &ldquo;I&rsquo;ve come to receive my
first Pok&eacute;mon sir.&rdquo; Green look at me as though he saw right through me. Green
continued to stare at me with the same look my dad would make when he&rsquo;d
reminisce on his days as a traveling trainer. After a few moments of yet
another awkward silence Green took me to a room towards the back of the lab.
Inside the room was relatively cold compared to outside. In the center of the
all grey room sat a machine with a transparent glass casing. As we got closer
to the machine I saw three Pok&eacute;ball. </p>
<p class="MsoNormal">&nbsp;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">&ldquo;So Roxas are you at all familiar with the three Pok&eacute;mon you
are allowed to choose from?&rdquo; Green asked opening the center machine&rsquo;s casing. I
nodded my head no. It had been a long time since I had actually thought about
the Pok&eacute;mon I might get to choose from once I started my journey. &ldquo;Well there
are three as you should clearly be able to see. The first Pok&eacute;ball&rdquo; He said
pointing to the one on the left. &ldquo;Contains a Pok&eacute;mon named Bulbasaur. It&rsquo;s a
more level headed Pok&eacute;mon and is compatible with nearly any trainer.&rdquo; I nodded
in acknowledgement. &ldquo;This one here.&rdquo; He said pointing to the middle Pok&eacute;ball. &ldquo;Contains
Charmander. Charmander can be quiet the handful if not given to the proper trainer,
very quick to anger and prone to fits of rage.&rdquo; I nodded once more and Green
pointed to the final Pok&eacute;ball.&nbsp; &ldquo;This one
contains Squritle. It&rsquo;s more relaxed than either of the other two Pok&eacute;mon, but
you won&rsquo;t find a Pok&eacute;mon who is more versatile in terms of travel.&rdquo; I nodded a
final time going to my belt and pulled my personal Pok&eacute;ball and pressed its
button to the button of another Pok&eacute;ball. A dinging noise signified that that
the transfer was complete. &ldquo;That&rsquo;s a good choice, Roxas. So tell me where are
you going first?&rdquo; I looked at him and thought on it. I didn&rsquo;t have much of an
idea, nor had I ever really thought about it. Finally I just shrugged my
shoulders and shifted my weight in uncomfortable silence as I stood waiting,
unsure whether or not I could leave yet. &ldquo;Well I&rsquo;d suggest starting in Pewter
City. After that who knows where the road will take you.&rdquo; I thanked him and turned
to leave quickly eager to get my journey underway. &ldquo;Hey Roxas&rdquo; Green shouted at
me. &ldquo;You might want this.&rdquo; He held out some sort of wrist device. It was a
fluorescent and vibrant orange. &ldquo;Sorry about the color it was the last one I
had.&rdquo; I took the device and looked at him quizzically drawing out another one
of his laughs. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s a Pok&eacute;Gear. They are all the rage in Johto. My Gramps had
about a dozen or so modified so that they function as a Pok&eacute;dex as well as a
normal Pok&eacute;Gear.&rdquo;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">&nbsp;</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">&ldquo;Thank you Professor.&rdquo; I shook his hand and ran out the
sliding doors and started quickly down Route 1. The sky was a crystal clear
blue, and filled with wild Pidgeys and Spearows. I continued down the route not
a care in the world. My journey to become a Pok&eacute;mon Master had just begun and I
had no idea the trials that awaited me.</p>
<p style="text-align:center;" class="MsoNormal"><i>Well hope ya&#39;ll enjoyed this little story.&nbsp;</i></p>
<p style="text-align:center;" class="MsoNormal"><i>Good to be back though and I&#39;ll see ya&#39;ll next time!</i></p><div style="clear:both;"></div><img src="http://www.gameinformer.com/aggbug.aspx?PostID=5422396" width="1" height="1">Xerixhttp://www.gameinformer.com/members/Xerix/default.aspxMyth or Legend: The Dragon Type/blogs/members/b/xerix_blog/archive/2013/08/11/myth-or-legend-the-dragon-type.aspx2013-08-11T11:20:00Z2013-08-11T11:20:00Z<p>Well I&#39;ve been trying to decide what to write about while I finish putting my Dragon Age blogs. So I figured I&#39;d dissect some of my favorite Pokemon type by type (I&#39;ll be ignoring the newest gen since it&#39;s not released.) So to start I&#39;m going to dive into my favorite type, the Dragon type.</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Dragon types are to date the most powerful type. With only two weaknesses, Ice and Dragon, They are versatile Pokemon that often make any team a force to be reckoned with. These Pokemon boast some of the highest attacks, special attacks, and speeds of any type. But like every type there has to be balance. Dragons are balanced by their low encounter rate and high evolution point. But any trainer with enough patients and perseverance can have these powerful monsters at their beck and call. But just who are these monsters?</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>#147: Dratini</p>
<p style="text-align:center;"><img src="http://www.gameinformer.com/resized-image.ashx/__size/610x0/__key/CommunityServer-Components-UserFiles/00-00-65-21-39-Attached+Files/0407.images-_2800_58_2900_.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></p>
<p style="text-align:left;">This little cutie used to be on of three Dragon type Pokemon. As the original it is still a fan favorite and paved the way for the eight non-legendary Dragon types that would follow. This cute and cuddly Pokemon boasts speeds that even the quickest of Jolteon would have trouble keeping up with. Unfortunately this Pokemon is frail until it evolves into Dragonair and later Dragonite. When the original games released however there was a low move pool for Dragon type and that made many learn that this Pokemon&#39;s true claim to fame was in the sheer number of moves it could learn type wise to make it even more versatile.</p>
<p style="text-align:left;">&nbsp;</p>
<p style="text-align:left;">#230: Kingdra</p>
<p style="text-align:center;"><img src="http://www.gameinformer.com/resized-image.ashx/__size/610x0/__key/CommunityServer-Components-UserFiles/00-00-65-21-39-Attached+Files/3618.Kingdra_5F00_of_5F00_pixiv_5F00_large.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></p>
<p style="text-align:left;">This big guy is the final evolution of Horsea. Kingdra takes the natural defense most Water types have and send it to extremes by adding a Dragon type bonus. With Dragon as it&#39;s only weakness it&#39;s no wonder this fierce guy has found its way on to Pokemon teams time and time again. although trade is necessary for this Pokemon to fully evolve it is worth getting. Many a trainer have fallen to this &#39;Wall&#39; of a Pokemon.</p>
<p style="text-align:left;">&nbsp;</p>
<p style="text-align:left;">#330 and 373: Flygon and Salamence.</p>
<p style="text-align:center;"><img src="http://www.gameinformer.com/resized-image.ashx/__size/610x0/__key/CommunityServer-Components-UserFiles/00-00-65-21-39-Attached+Files/3022.Flygon_5F00_VS_5F00_Salamence_5F00_by_5F00_samuelnff.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></p>
<p>Flygon is the evolved form of Trapinch and in many ways the exact opposite of it&#39;s previous form. Flygon takes the common Dragon type approach and hits hard and fast. However it seems to lack a real defense and can be eliminated with in two or three rounds if it&#39;s opponent has any opportunity to strike back. Salamence on the other hand has plenty of HP and a hardy defense. While not nearly as offensive as some of his Dragon type companions he makes a great wall much like Kingdra.</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>#334: Altaria</p>
<p style="text-align:center;"><img src="http://www.gameinformer.com/resized-image.ashx/__size/610x0/__key/CommunityServer-Components-UserFiles/00-00-65-21-39-Attached+Files/3247.images-_2800_59_2900_.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></p>
<p style="text-align:left;">Altaria is a bit of an enigma as far as Dragon types go. She seems not to excel in anyone area making her a great addition to any team as trainers can specialize her stats by hand making her the perfect choice to round off a team. She boasts a diverse move pool and evolves relatively early compared to most other Dragon types.</p>
<p style="text-align:left;">&nbsp;</p>
<p style="text-align:left;">#445: Garchomp</p>
<p style="text-align:center;"><img src="http://www.gameinformer.com/resized-image.ashx/__size/610x0/__key/CommunityServer-Components-UserFiles/00-00-65-21-39-Attached+Files/4478.images-_2800_60_2900_.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></p>
<p style="text-align:left;">While not as strong as some of the other Dragon types, no Dragon hits faster then a Garchomp. These guys don&#39;t mess around when it comes to speed and will make one hell of a physical sweeper on any team. This Pokemon has found it&#39;s way on to team after team, and as the only fourth generation Dragon type it&#39;s only real draw back is let evolution that is all, but standard when it comes to Dragons.</p>
<p style="text-align:left;">&nbsp;</p>
<p style="text-align:left;">#612, and 635: Haxorus, and Hydreigon</p>
<p style="text-align:center;"><img src="http://www.gameinformer.com/resized-image.ashx/__size/610x0/__key/CommunityServer-Components-UserFiles/00-00-65-21-39-Attached+Files/4452.f75fbdc0cca68cd1d2e1a728153ece8f.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></p>
<p style="text-align:left;">Haxorus is a power house of speed and physical attack. It&#39;s also the first pure Dragon type fully evolved Pokemon. Although it lacks in defense it still makes a great physical sweeper. Hydreigon on the other hand is a powerful special sweeper and also boasts a high HP making it a pain in the rear to defeat. However he has a major draw back. Hydreigon has the highest evolution point to date.</p>
<p style="text-align:center;"><i>So did you guys enjoy? I believe I got them all. Leave comments on the next type you&#39;d like to see me cover.</i></p>
<p style="text-align:center;"><i>As always thanks for the read guys. Cheers mates!</i></p><div style="clear:both;"></div><img src="http://www.gameinformer.com/aggbug.aspx?PostID=3832821" width="1" height="1">Xerixhttp://www.gameinformer.com/members/Xerix/default.aspxOh Hey There.../blogs/members/b/xerix_blog/archive/2013/08/10/oh-hey-there.aspx2013-08-10T13:21:00Z2013-08-10T13:21:00Z<p>So here I am again at long last back on GIO, and even better with a laptop to boot! So anyway I figured I&#39;ll dive right back into talks of gaming. It&#39;s been a while since I&#39;ve just kind of talked about my thoughts on the industry and the such so...</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>To start off Xbox is digging itself into a hole. And it&#39;s not leaving any time soon. While yes the Xbox One is an impressive step into the next gen I still stand by my belief that this gen is over too soon. The Xbox One and PS4 should be a few years off not a few months. But for what they are Xbox seems to be making rookie mistakes in not standing by their original design. But I digress from Xbox and move to the PS4. The PS4 is going to in my opinion be the weakest system in it&#39;s line. While the PS4 will boast a more powerful engine then it&#39;s predecessors it will be harmed by the fact that the PS3 it&#39;s really done yet. For the PS4 and really any of the &quot;Next Gen&quot; systems to work out they are going to need to be truly defining and that means every game counts.</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Speaking of &quot;Next Gen&quot; games, I&#39;m excited for a few. For starters let me just say Final Fantasy XV looks impressive. The bits of what was hopefully game play looked beautiful. The fighting looked fluid and the world stunning as always. Also from Square is news of the Kingdom Hearts 3. Really you are either excited or you aren&#39;t. Also up and coming is Dragon Age Inquisition, but I&#39;ll be getting to that later on this week. Suffice to say I&#39;m pumped. Other new IPs that look entertaining are TitanFall and Crimson Dragon.</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Other than that I&#39;ve not much to say on these subjects for now. Really I&#39;m just glad to start blogging again.</p>
<p style="text-align:center;"><i>So what has been on ya&#39;lls mind?</i></p>
<p style="text-align:center;"><i>Any new games you are excited for? And game announcements or predictions you&#39;d like to see with the new consoles coming?</i></p>
<p style="text-align:center;"><i>As always thanks for the read, cheers mate.</i></p><div style="clear:both;"></div><img src="http://www.gameinformer.com/aggbug.aspx?PostID=3818750" width="1" height="1">Xerixhttp://www.gameinformer.com/members/Xerix/default.aspxIts A Wonderful State of Choas/blogs/members/b/xerix_blog/archive/2013/07/21/its-a-wonderful-state-of-choas.aspx2013-07-21T15:35:00Z2013-07-21T15:35:00Z<p><span>Its no secret that I love Bioware. My love affair with this company is rooted in my love for Dragon Age. While most of their fans claim Mass Effect as their superior series I disagree. But what I hope to do is really flesh out the world of Thedas and bring it to life. So be you Elvhen, Human, Kossith, or Children of the Stone gather round for a brief history of the magical world of Thedas.</span></p>
<p><span><br /></span></p>
<p><span>The earliest records of Thedosian are fragmented stories told by Dalish Keepers and broken memories shared by Dwarven Shaperate. They tell of a time when the Elvhen ran free and dominated the open world, while the Dwarves remained below the ground in Thaigs the comprised a kingdom so large it sprawled across Thedas. The records claim that there was a time when no Humans roamed Thedas but this is a fact often disputed or out right considered blasphemous by most humans.</span></p>
<p><span><br /></span></p>
<p><span>However this all changed with the first Tevinter nomads. With the humans came the first true wars. While the Dwarves remained safely below ground the Elvhen were hunted down. While most were enslaved, some managed to escape and were driven into hiding.</span></p>
<p><span><br /></span></p>
<p><span>The rule of the Tevinter Magocracy was absolute. For close to 2500 years they went unchecked conquering every nook and cranny of Thedas. That is until a group of mages sought to enter the Golden City, a seat of power to a then unknown god at the urging of the Old Gods. Upon entering the Golden City the mages were struck down by the Golden City&#39;s ruler who cast them down to Thedas as the first of the Darkspawn. These creatures immediately tainted the Old God Dumat, who took the form of a tainted high dragon, or Archdemon, to lead the Darkspawn in the First Blight.</span></p>
<p><span><br /></span></p>
<p><span>After nearly two hundred years of fighting a new order known only as the Grey Wardens emerged. With their help the rag tag nations left defending the continent from the Blight defeated the Archdemon and ended the First Blight.</span></p>
<p><span><br /></span></p>
<p><span>The thousand or so years following the First Blight left the Tevinter Imperium in a state of disrepair they would never recover from. Due to their weakened state many new nations emerged along with a new religion. This religion known only as the Chant of Light, was spread through the voice of the prophet Andraste, who claimed the Tevinter Old Gods were lies and that the Maker was the one true God.</span></p>
<p><span><br /></span></p>
<p><span>The First Blight left the Dwarven kingdom in ruins with only the capital city of Orzammar surviving. The Elvhes who fought along side the Humans for the entirety of The Blight was granted a new home in the form of The Dales. Following the founding of the Chantry, the nations of Anderfels, Rivain, Antiva, The City-States of the Free Marches, Neverra, Orlais, and Ferelden, emerged over the course of roughly eight hundred years.</span></p>
<p><span><br /></span></p>
<p><span>Around the Seventh Era a new race, the Kossith, under the religion of The Qun, attempted to invade Thedas. This was the first time that the nations of Thedas worked together to repel a common enemy. The nations and the people of The Qun, or the Qunari, now have an uneasy armistice to this day. Since the First Blight four more have occurred. Since the Fifth Blight ended the world has entered another state of chaos.</span></p>
<p><span><br /></span></p>
<p><span>The events surrounding the Fifth Blight and the rise of the Champion of Kirkwall comprise the events of Dragon Age Origins and Dragon Age Two. </span></p>
<p><span>This is it for this blog. I don&#39;t want to overload your minds. But I will be back with more in time.</span></p><div style="clear:both;"></div><img src="http://www.gameinformer.com/aggbug.aspx?PostID=3384614" width="1" height="1">Xerixhttp://www.gameinformer.com/members/Xerix/default.aspxFood for Thought/blogs/members/b/xerix_blog/archive/2013/07/19/food-for-thought.aspx2013-07-19T04:02:00Z2013-07-19T04:02:00Z<p><span>To say that we&#39;ve come so far in gaming is an understatement. What we&#39;ve achieved is unparalleled growth in a media form. Art, news, music, acting, reading, and more are some of the many forms of media we&#39;ve seen appear in humanities time. All of these mediums (Which a medium is anything through which media is conveyed.) Have always grown with technology, but none have ever spurred its growth quiet the way gaming has. Gaming has come into its own the as a cultural phenomenon. This mad race to be top dog draws many parallels to American politics. Nintendo, Sony, Microsoft, and every console in &nbsp;between has provide us with a plethora of &quot;parties&quot; to choose from. Larger companies such as Bioware, Square, and Bungie are akin to the secondary parties available to us now. While they have little hopes of being the &quot;leader&quot; their ability to sway the general public&#39;s opinion is unmistakable and not something to be ignored. In recent years Indie publishers have displayed an amazing ability to bring to light the aspects that gamers want improved much the way lobbyist and special interest groups do politically. All of these aspect come together to create a unique set of opportunities that could usher in untold gaming bliss or apocalyptic circumstances.</span></p>
<p><span><br /></span></p>
<p><span>But I digress I really just wanted to spout some off the opinions I&#39;ve had over the last few months. Now I know everyone won&#39;t share these feelings. If I offend anyone I apologize in advance.</span></p>
<p><span><br /></span></p>
<p><span>To begin Bethesda&#39;s time is up. We&#39;ve seen some amazing and breathtaking experiences offered to us by Bethesda. But even I have begun to grow wearisome of their seeming infallibility to produce a game riddled with bugs and glitches. This is in excusable with the sheer amount of time between their games. Especially from a company of their size and caliber. They can afford to have more quality tests done and more polish put into their games. If they don&#39;t fixes this soon they are going to find more and more support lost. However that&#39;s not to say Bethesda is all bad. No other company makes the leaps and bounds they do, that so powerfully mold the standards of the Western RPG. Still they are on thin ice and their next game or two shall determine their future.</span></p>
<p><span><br /></span></p>
<p><span>Besides Bethesda, Bioware has quickly grown on me. With a masterful ability to craft experiences unique to their studio Bioware seems to have completely understood the gaming communities recent spike in interest in story and by extent our need for autonomy in gaming. We as humans love the ability to choose. Choice has always been present in gaming, but it wasn&#39;t until recently that our choices began to matter. This is a huge movement being called for by gamers and Bioware seems to have answered the call. They have dived head first into our need for an immersive experience that we can mold with Dragon Age and Mass Effect. Both powerful series in their own right they are going to continue to define what blend of gameplay and story immersion are needed to remain relevant in the gaming world.</span></p>
<p><span><br /></span></p>
<p><span>But large triple A studios are no longer the only studios to look at. In recent years we&#39;ve seen an explosion of indie gaming companies making their marks on the gaming world. Developers, producers, artist, writers, and more no longer need to solely strive to be apart of a triple A studio. Thanks to leaps in technology and an increase in accessibility to the proper tool sets budding gaming developers and others have the chance to show their abilities.</span></p>
<p><span><br /></span></p>
<p><span>As we move into a new era of gaming I feel that a quote from a game itself is appropriate. &quot;We stand upon the precipice of change. The world fears the inevitable plummet into the abyss. Watch for that moment...and when it comes, do not hesitate to leap. It is only when you fall that you learn whether you can fly.&rdquo; With the move to a new console era and many studios&#39; fates up in the air we are approaching the abyss. The moment is upon both gamers and developers alike and its time to leap.</span></p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p style="text-align:center;"><i>Well I hope everyone enjoyed my blog today. Since I had a relatively easy time writing on my phone expect more blogs to come.</i></p>
<p style="text-align:center;"><i>As always thanks for reading ladies and gents.</i></p>
<p style="text-align:center;"><i>And as a question for you guys what companies do you feel are on the edge of change good or bad?</i></p><div style="clear:both;"></div><img src="http://www.gameinformer.com/aggbug.aspx?PostID=3337184" width="1" height="1">Xerixhttp://www.gameinformer.com/members/Xerix/default.aspxGamer Talk: A Quick Announcment/blogs/members/b/xerix_blog/archive/2013/05/03/gamer-talk-a-quick-announcment.aspx2013-05-03T15:43:00Z2013-05-03T15:43:00Z<p>So I recently saw just how large of a catalyst Skype was for socialization between members of GIO. I&#39;d really like to take advantage of this and extend an invite to all members of GIO to join Gamer Talk GIO. Gamer Talk is intended to serve two purposes. The first is to give those of us with a hectic and busy life style to still talk about the going ons in the gaming industry without the need to try and work in a blog. The second is to allow the lesser known members of the blogging community to begin socializing with the other members of GIO, in hopes of building friendships and building confidence overall to encourage others to blog.</p>
<p>Now down to the details. I&#39;m hoping to start the first session this Sunday around seven. Each session will last one week starting on Sunday night and ending on the next Sunday morning. I should have a blog based on the conversation had during the week up no later than the Monday following. The chat will continue for the entire week so feel free to comment when you have time. If you would like to participate just let me know in the comments, on my page, or simply add me, WhiteAngelDragon, on Skype. The group is open to anyone, and I implore all of you to at least come watch the first session if nothing else.</p>
<p style="text-align:center;"><i>Thanks for reading guys and giving this blog a gander.</i></p><div style="clear:both;"></div><img src="http://www.gameinformer.com/aggbug.aspx?PostID=2816250" width="1" height="1">Xerixhttp://www.gameinformer.com/members/Xerix/default.aspxWhere has the Creativity Gone?/blogs/members/b/xerix_blog/archive/2013/04/30/where-has-the-creativity-gone.aspx2013-04-30T19:24:00Z2013-04-30T19:24:00Z<p>It was once said &quot;Everything that can be thought has already been thought of.&quot; I don&#39;t believe in this yet we often see people complaining of unimaginative stories in media these days. I think that the problem lays not in that nothing new can come, but that we as humans are beginning to be more exposed to material and so we see influences more often and mistake this for ripping off.&nbsp;</p>
<p>Having talked about this with my English teacher at length I&#39;m going to hand in my condensed version of why we need to look to others for ideas, and why this in the long run is actually a good thing.</p>
<p>I just finished William Shakespeare&#39;s Macbeth. To be honest
my mind is wrapped around this beautiful, yet childish play. (Don&#39;t murder me
for that I&#39;ll get to it guys.) It&#39;s funny, but most all mediums barrow from
Shakespeare. Writers have been feeling his influence for years and musicians as
well have begun to notice that no one truly minds if you borrow and are
influenced his work. (The band Mumford and Son&#39;s whole first album is made up
of references to his plays.) Television and movies are starting to get on this
train (yet again) so hey why not games too? I mean Macbeth, Hamlet, The
Tempest, A Mid Summers Night Dream, hell even Caesar and Romeo and Juliet would
make for lovely games. Let me show you how.</p>
<p>To start Macbeth is by far the best candidate. It has
murder, prophecies, witches, and all-out war. Imagine popping in this game and
you are greeted by the Weird Sisters and Hecate. You listen in on their
conversation for a bit before they leave. The camera fades to black and we are
then thrust into the body of Macbeth. We are instantly forced into a boss
fight. As the tutorial guides us to victory we get to the end of this battle
and are given a choice. Kill the man before us or spare him and leave him to
the mercy of King Duncan. I won&#39;t part anymore story details, but this has the
potential to be a grand what if game. This game could shift dynamically as you
make choices and kill or don&#39;t kill. The great part of this though is that a
huge part of Macbeth is fate and how it can&#39;t be avoided, so in the end the
deaths are decided. And just because we are borrowing from a story doesn&#39;t mean
we should follow the story to the &#39;T&#39; surprise us gaming industry and give us
the plot twist of our life.</p>
<p>Now Caesar on the other hand would be perfect to allow a
developer such as say, THQ, to really explore the morality systems in place in
gaming. I mean let&#39;s say you start the game as Brutus who is being assaulted by
Cassius, and his silver tongue. You are being asked to kill your closest
friends for the good of Rome. After your decision we switch to Marc Antony
who&#39;s first choice is whether or not to take revenge for his friend. Whether
it&#39;s for murder or a conspiracy is up to you. Sure it sounds a bit more like an
interactive movie, but it has potential.</p>
<p>Now Shakespeare is, but one of many older authors who would
make for great source material, even if his puns are again a tad childish.
There are tons of other authors both famous and unknown who would provide
perfect source material. With so much classic literature out there who knows
what could happen. If there is one thing that has become apparent it&#39;s this;
there is a lot of potential stories both new and old that gaming could look to
for inspiration. All the time people are coming up with grand and beautiful
stories. Borrow from these and use them as tools to craft beautiful stories
Gaming Industry.</p>
<p>Now I know often people claim that Copyright/Trademark laws
make this a difficult thing to do. This has always bugged me as these laws were
actually made to encourage authors to look to other stories to get ideas. There
are two things that I will say though will greatly increase odds of Devs
getting the okay they need to make book and play based games. The first is that
if the author is still alive for the love of god, include them in the process.
I know that this seems like common sense, but remember the authors are just
like Devs, this is their vision and they are protective of it. The second is
that if the author is dead, or the rights are owned by a company; don&#39;t do anything
that you wouldn&#39;t want someone to do to your game. Again this seems like common
sense, but just keep this in mind.</p>
<p>Maybe I&#39;m hoping in dreaming, but the source material from
novels and plays alike is there. The best part about these types of games though
is that we get better stories while the Devs can focus on the gameplay. Plus
the Devs still get to learn how to craft grand stories without having to risk
crafting their own stories, in a story conscious gaming society. </p>
<p align="center"><i>As a gamer and a writer I have a unique twist as all of my stories are
written as if I am a gamer controlling my character. I know there are other
writers on GIO so do you write like this?</i></p>
<p align="center"><i>Amongst my own personal novel choices for good gaming potentials
include the Drizzt Series and The Secrets of the Immortal Nicolas Flamel. Do
you guys have any choices?</i></p>
<p align="center"><i>As a question that I hope sparks interest, Do you feel we are becoming
a more story conscious gaming community?</i></p>
<p align="center"><i>As always it has been fun blogging tonight and I hope ya&#39;ll enjoyed!</i></p><div style="clear:both;"></div><img src="http://www.gameinformer.com/aggbug.aspx?PostID=2805788" width="1" height="1">Xerixhttp://www.gameinformer.com/members/Xerix/default.aspxFinal Fantasy 13: Some Thoughts/blogs/members/b/xerix_blog/archive/2013/04/12/final-fantasy-13-some-thoughts.aspx2013-04-12T18:19:00Z2013-04-12T18:19:00Z<p>I&#39;ve got a laundry list of thoughts about Final Fantasy 13.
From personal opinions to ways it could have been better.</p>
<p style="text-align:center;"><img src="http://www.gameinformer.com/resized-image.ashx/__size/610x0/__key/CommunityServer-Components-UserFiles/00-00-65-21-39-Attached+Files/5518.images-_2800_46_2900_.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></p>
<p>For starters Final Fantasy has one of the best openings in
the franchise. (To clarify I consider everything up to the first major boss fight
part of the opening of any game.) In the very beginning we see people being
herded onto a train for the Purge, in a moment that eerily reminds me of the
early Holocaust days. We see a bit of shade action and some small banter before
BAM! One of the deportees makes her move against the guard. She effortlessly
liberates the train and the people aboard it. They escape while she, Lightning,
and another man, Sazh, fight off a large robot. Switch scenes to a young man,
Snow, and his resistance group are slowly fighting PSICOM and helping the Purge
victims to freedom. During one of the ensuing battles a mother dies making Snow
promise to &quot;protect him.&quot; We also follow Hope and Vanille, two kids chasing
after Snow, who is trying desperately to find his fianc&eacute;, while trying to
protect all the Purge victims. The rapid pacing of these opening moments pushes
the game to an even greater limit as it builds this sense of urgency in the
player regardless of the fact that we don&#39;t know why the Purge is happening or
why the military is truly targeting you.</p>
<p style="text-align:center;"><img src="http://www.gameinformer.com/resized-image.ashx/__size/610x0/__key/CommunityServer-Components-UserFiles/00-00-65-21-39-Attached+Files/5164.Nora_2700_s_5F00_last_5F00_words.png" border="0" alt="" /></p>
<p>I&#39;m going to come out and say it right now. Final Fantasy 13
isn&#39;t about Lightning. On my first play through I thought that the story could
only be about her. At first it was about her finding Sereh, than it was about revenge
against the Cocoon Military/Hierarchy, than about justice for the people of
Cocoon. But looking back and playing it now I realize the story is really about
Vanille. It&#39;s about her overcoming her fear of fate and facing it. And this
actually makes perfect sense. Every game in the franchise has been about the
protagonist facing fate and fighting it. All of the characters came together
because of Vanille running away from fate. Their trials are all because Vanille
continually turned coat and ran. This whole story was about her and I hate
myself for not seeing it sooner.</p>
<p align="center"><strong>*CAUTION HUGE SPOILERS*</strong></p>
<p>Final Fantasy 13 also has my favorite supporting character
of all time.</p>
<p align="center"><img src="http://www.gameinformer.com/resized-image.ashx/__size/610x0/__key/CommunityServer-Components-UserFiles/00-00-65-21-39-Attached+Files/4760.Sazh.Katzroy.600.96604.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></p>
<p align="center">Sazh Katzroy</p>
<p>Sazh is by far the most believable character in the
franchise, bar none. His reactions, his lack of action, his depression, and
fa&ccedil;ade of happiness, were all exactly how I&#39;d expect someone in his position to
act. In the beginning he is scared and follows Lightning never truly
questioning her motives because he had no other real choice. After the fight
with Anima and they became L&#39;cie Sazh stayed strong for Hope and Vanille
because he is a parent. But the moment of truth came in Chapter 8 when Sazh is
confronted by PSICOM and they have his son. After a tough encounter Sazh is
thrown in to turmoil and guilt as he loses his son again, and discovers that
the source of all his trouble, the very reason he is a L&#39;cie is Vanille. The
girl he risked his life for on multiple occasions, the one right in front of
him, is responsible for all his sorrow and anger. And at first he wants to kill
her. He wants to take revenge for all his sorrows. But he quickly realizes he
couldn&#39;t even if he tried and puts his pistol against his head. In what he
thought was his last few moments he laments on whether or not he is even strong
enough to end his own life. Right as he is about to pull the trigger Brynhildr
appears before him and attacks Vanille. He protects her and in this moment all
of his anger and sorrow fades for now he has a mission, to protect Vanille and
keep her safe because he couldn&#39;t keep his son safe.</p>
<p>I really loved the battling system. In fact it is one of my
favorites, and with only a small minor tweak it could have been flawless. The
controller has three unused buttons; R1, R2, and L2. Those three buttons could
have been used better. My personal idea is that each one should have been set
to one of the party characters so that we could change to any of their Roles at
will. This would have opened up even more personalization and needs for strategy.
I really would have loved to have been able to switch characters in and out
during battle. This is even a logical choice as the six were together for the
vast majority of the time. We should have been able to set and bring up a list
of preselected move inputs so that as we learned how defeat different enemies
we could tailor our auto battle list to avoid the hassle of having to sift
through long command lists when time is precious.</p>
<p>To me Final Fantasy 13 is not in any way a black sheep. Its
experience was as unique as every other Final Fantasy game to date.</p>
<p align="center"><i>So any memories of Final Fantasy 13 for you guys?</i></p>
<p align="center"><i>Thanks for reading you guys and gals!</i></p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p><div style="clear:both;"></div><img src="http://www.gameinformer.com/aggbug.aspx?PostID=2736742" width="1" height="1">Xerixhttp://www.gameinformer.com/members/Xerix/default.aspxReality: Pains of Growing Up./blogs/members/b/xerix_blog/archive/2013/03/25/reality-pains-of-growing-up.aspx2013-03-25T20:59:00Z2013-03-25T20:59:00Z<p>Man it&#39;s been almost what a week sense I&#39;ve blogged. Well I&#39;m trying to get back.</p>
<p>First though I&#39;d like to apologize to the community. I failed my 31/31. It&#39;s not that I ran out of ideas, or even time like so many other great bloggers do. No it would seem that life is finally starting to catch up to this gamer. I&#39;d like to especially like to apologize Orochisama LEVON Spector who was pretty much my biggest supporter during my run. Now on to an explanation as to why.</p>
<p>Well I guess the big pain started about a week before I stopped blogging. It was a relatively normal day at school. Until some jerk called one of my best friends a w****. Being the protective person I am I turned and took a swing on the guy. Unfortunately for me the principal happened to be there and I ended up hitting him. (Not that I condone that behavior but it did make me feel better.) Okay whatever accidents happen right. Well again unfortunately for me I am eighteen. It was technically an offense and the principal and I don&#39;t see eye to eye. I was told I had to options at that point test my luck with the School Board or Drop Out. (Regardless of my choices I recommend all of you who haven&#39;t finish high school. It may only seem like a piece of paper, but the sense of pride and self worth it brings is impossible to describe.) I chose to drop as it is going to make my goal of becoming a teacher all the more possible.</p>
<p>But what does this have to do with gaming? Well in a sense it&#39;s like starting new game plus. I&#39;m Eighteen now. Even though I&#39;ve been alive for close to a fifth of a century I feel as if I&#39;m starting a game at level one again. The enemies and trials are harder, and I am armed only with the previous knowledge I&#39;ve gained. In a lot of ways it&#39;s liberating to not be under my parents complete control. (Though yes still living at home has it&#39;s advantages.) I suppose that a lot of the older members here have made the connection already. Growing up is a lot like gaming. When we are young we are taught and prepared. This results in us obtaining certain skills. As we grow older or &quot;level up&quot; these skills improve. Yes in a lot of ways life can be compared to a game.</p>
<p>And so looking back I wish I had treated my life a bit more like how I treat my gaming. I wish I would have learned from my mistakes, laughed at the occasional hiccup and learned to smile when it got rough.</p>
<p>Hopefully I pick a few nerves or brains tonight and get you guys thinking. Sometimes it pays to be a gamer. We live many live and are afford many chances to learn that we often take for granted.</p>
<p style="text-align:center;"><i>So guys have you ever thought to apply what you learn in gaming to life.</i></p>
<p style="text-align:center;"><i>Hope you guys enjoy this as now that job hunting, G.E.D. prep work, and College registration enter my life I may not get to blog as often as you or I would like.</i></p><div style="clear:both;"></div><img src="http://www.gameinformer.com/aggbug.aspx?PostID=2682542" width="1" height="1">Xerixhttp://www.gameinformer.com/members/Xerix/default.aspxDay 18: I'm Going to Ramble/blogs/members/b/xerix_blog/archive/2013/03/18/day-18-i-39-m-going-to-ramble.aspx2013-03-18T18:22:00Z2013-03-18T18:22:00Z<p>I&#39;m feeling rather scatter brained at the moment so I guess we will see where that takes us.</p>
<p>I guess I should start with Ashaman3000&#39;s comment yesterday about what I&#39;d like to see in the future. Well for starters I&#39;d like to see the majority of the industry move away from FPS games. Not that I don&#39;t enjoy them, there are just to many for the industries own good. I&#39;d also like to see a larger emphasis on the preservation of classic games. This is a large market let&#39;s cover it. I&#39;d like to see new IPs. I love my franchises, but the year of the sequel is over people. Sony and Microsoft need to leave the touch screen and motion controls alone. They are nice, but honestly that&#39;s not what you guys cater to. Stick with the classic controller. When it&#39;s the right time to move into that stuff you will know. Nintendo. You should really think about maybe creating a system that is more or less your version of the PS4/XboxNext and use that to help re-establish your relationships with Third Party Developers. Speaking of Developers, I&#39;d really like to see some Dev teams pair up and create some unique franchises. Crossovers if done right could make for some amazing games. Everyone needs to take notes from Journey and The Walking Dead. Love or hate them thay&#39;ve shown that gamers are getting smarter and that story emphasis is indeed a large part of what we want. Developers do us all a favor. Stick. To. Your. Choices. Don&#39;t create games just to please us. We may be your life line, but these are still your brain children. The choices are yours to make. Listening to what we want as your customer is good, but don&#39;t spoil us.&nbsp;</p>
<p>Woah that was a lot anyway. If you guys haven&#39;t already go read Noobtubin8tr&#39;s XCOMGIO blogs. They are amazing and well written. Congrats Brian on making it into the Newsletter.</p>
<p>Congrats as well to Jolt the Cynic on his one year here at GIO. I know just how much he loves this place and we are glad to have him here.</p>
<p>I think I&#39;m pretty much done now. As one last note. If you are reading this and are not yet apart of the GIO blogging community, I highly recommend you join us.</p>
<p style="text-align:center;"><i>Ok I&#39;m done rambling.</i></p>
<p style="text-align:center;"><i>Hope you enjoyed it i suppose.</i></p><div style="clear:both;"></div><img src="http://www.gameinformer.com/aggbug.aspx?PostID=2665659" width="1" height="1">Xerixhttp://www.gameinformer.com/members/Xerix/default.aspxDay 17: Top 5 Number 1/blogs/members/b/xerix_blog/archive/2013/03/17/day-17-top-5-number-1.aspx2013-03-17T12:16:00Z2013-03-17T12:16:00Z<p>Day 17 here we are. This is my 50th blog. I am honestly surprised I made it this far, but more on that another day. You guys came here to read a blog about a gamer&#39;s number one game. &nbsp;Well I can tell you this the answer is one of the most unique you will ever find. But first yes I&#39;m going to ramble to make sure I cover the entire preface text that appears before hand. This should be about enough.</p>
<p>So my number one game well it&#39;s a little hard to explain, but the simplest way is to say that it is the future.</p>
<p>#1. The Future: The truth is is that as we grow older and we play more games our tastes will grow. We find new games that replace older ones and sometimes old one re-enter our hearts. The future is an unsure thing. Something we as people have to face. All of us here on GIO do it the same way, by gaming. But even now the future of gaming is as uncertain as the rest of the world. company closings, retirements, trivial lawsuits, and fan outrage, have all caused uncertainty in the gaming community. Still we take comfort in our games. And that&#39;s why the future is my number one. Because as games come and go so to will my favorites. I spent a blog each describing Kingdom Hearts and Dragon Age, both of which used to be my number ones have entered a list of gaming legends. I started out this set of blogs saying that GIO has changed my favorites list several times. And that has continued to be true. And I hope that it continues to be true. So my number one will be ever changing and as games leave this spot and enter a spot in my heart that means they will live on forever in my heart.</p>
<p style="text-align:center;"><i>So there you have it. A bit different from what you guys were expecting.</i></p>
<p style="text-align:center;"><i>Hope you enjoyed the blog as always guys.</i></p><div style="clear:both;"></div><img src="http://www.gameinformer.com/aggbug.aspx?PostID=2663122" width="1" height="1">Xerixhttp://www.gameinformer.com/members/Xerix/default.aspxDay 16: Top 5 Games: Numbers 3 and 2/blogs/members/b/xerix_blog/archive/2013/03/16/day-16-top-5-games-numbers-3-and-2.aspx2013-03-16T14:06:00Z2013-03-16T14:06:00Z<p>In case you missed it there is the link to my numbers 5 and 4. &nbsp;<a href="http://www.gameinformer.com/blogs/members/b/xerix_blog/archive/2013/03/14/day-14-top-5-games-numbers-5-and-4.aspx">Top 5 Games: 5 and 4</a>&nbsp;Anyway let&#39;s continue shall we?</p>
<p style="text-align:center;"><img src="http://www.gameinformer.com/resized-image.ashx/__size/610x0/__key/CommunityServer-Components-UserFiles/00-00-65-21-39-Attached+Files/5658.borderlands_5F00_2.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></p>
<p style="text-align:center;"><i>Still fun to play no matter how many times!</i></p>
<p>#3. Borderlands 2: I&#39;m a lunatic for Couch Co-Op, and the original Borderlands proved to be the perfect formula. Tons of of colorful scenery, unique and interesting characters, and enough obscure references that even the internet took note. So when I heard about the sequel, I was honestly a little skeptical at first. Sure I wanted more of Borderlands, but at the same time I didn&#39;t want it to be over done. Some how 2K and Gearbox did it though. I found myself loving every moment of the new story. The characters were even more outrageous. The story, even more insane, and the gun even more ridiculous. Yes in what is a rarity in this industry, 2K and Gearbox not only continued the amazing formula the seemed to perfect what I&#39;d already believed perfect. And well it has CL4P-TP.</p>
<p style="text-align:center;"><img src="http://www.gameinformer.com/resized-image.ashx/__size/610x0/__key/CommunityServer-Components-UserFiles/00-00-65-21-39-Attached+Files/5751.HeartGold-and-SoulSilver-Map.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></p>
<p style="text-align:center;"><i>Bonus points to whoever is first to name what town the picture is focused on.</i></p>
<p>#2. Pokemon HeartGold: My first Pokemon game was gold version. I remember sinking hours into the game finding every secret. I remember the shock and dismay as I discovered that Bugsy is indeed a boy. (One of the most shocking moments of my life.) I remember grinding in my first real RPG, to obtain my team of 100. I remember each and ever triumphant battle. So when I heard about the remakes, I knew I had to have it. A chance to revisit my childhood. Even though it was a game I had completed the original hundred&#39;s of times, I still find myself drawn back in to the world time and time again. HeartGold is one of the few games to contain that unique combination of replayability and nostalgia that has landed it here in my second spot.</p>
<p style="text-align:center;"><i>Well it&#39;s all down hill from here. Just a quick thank you to all the of the wonderful words of encouragement.</i></p>
<p style="text-align:center;"><i>As always thanks for reading hope you enjoyed.</i></p><div style="clear:both;"></div><img src="http://www.gameinformer.com/aggbug.aspx?PostID=2661445" width="1" height="1">Xerixhttp://www.gameinformer.com/members/Xerix/default.aspx